text:
Christian Concern
Church leaders pursue judicial review over 'unlawful' government church closures
122 church leaders from England and Wales have launched an urgent legal challenge of the English and Welsh government's actions in unilaterally stopping church worship services.
Led by Pastor Ade Omooba MBE and with the support of the Christian Legal Centre, the group's challenge formally began on Friday as papers were submitted asking a judge to urgently review the lawfulness of the bans.
The independence of the Church to govern its own affairs is guaranteed in the constitution and religious freedom is protected throughout human rights law. Civil governments should not simply be able to declare that churches are shut without providing any real evidence that it absolutely necessary to close them. When church buildings are allowed to be used for secular purposes, but not for religious ones, this is clearly not the case.
Some churches may willingly stop their services. The crucial point is that it's their decision to make.
Jonathan Hough QC, a leading barrister in the area of public law, is lined up to argue this critical case which we hope will be heard in the coming week.
Ban is 'manifestly unreasonable'
The leaders seek permission for judicial review on the grounds that government restrictions on public worship breach Article 9 rights, including the freedom of Christians to manifest their religion or beliefs in communal worship, teaching, practice and observance.
The claim states that the government failed to discharge their public law duty of enquiry, especially by failing to ascertain the extent to which leaving open places of worship would risk contributing to the spread of Covid 19.
Furthermore, the claim states that the government's regulations were made outside the legislative power conferred by the Public Health 1984 Act, an important principle long recognised by English law and the constitution.
The claim also argues that the state has unreasonably privileged the use of religious premises for secular purposes whilst prohibiting their use for religious purposes which are their raison d'être. This shows that this ban on collective worship is manifestly unreasonable.
It outlines the position of the leaders on the issue saying that:
"The English and Welsh Governments have now introduced two successive sets of lockdown measures which have completely prohibited and criminalised public communal worship, a core aspect of religious life for the Claimants and their congregations. With these measures, the Governments have inflicted a terrible human cost, without rigorous consideration of less onerous restrictions, and as part of a package which leaves places of worship open for secular activities."
Pastor Ade Omooba MBE, who is leading the church leaders' legal challenge, said, "We have been left with no alternative but to pursue a judicial review on this crucial issue and at this significant moment for the freedom to worship in church in this country.
"We call on the government to recognise the vital importance of church ministry and the principle of church autonomy from the state."
Government pressured to U-turn
The legal action follows new restrictions, which came into force in England on 5 November, which state that "places of worship will be closed" with exceptions for funerals, broadcast acts of worship, individual prayer, essential voluntary public services, formal childcare, and some other exempted activities.
These restrictions have once again made it a criminal offence for Christians to gather for worship or prayer, or to go to church for worship on a Sunday.
During the Welsh 'firebreak' one church worship service was even shut down by police who stated that the service was 'illegal'.
'We don't have good data'
Ahead of the restrictions, over 1500 church leaders signed an open letter urging the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, not to close churches describing the decision to do so as 'baffling.'
Pressure on the government increased last week as the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and interfaith leaders intervened and urged the government to U-turn on the move.
Former UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, also raised serious concerns over the government's policy in parliament last week, stating: "My concern is the government today making it illegal to conduct an act of public worship for the best of intentions, sets a precedent that could be misused for a government in the future with the worst of intentions. It has unintended consequences."
When asked last week how the government had justified closing places of worship, chief scientific advisors, Professor Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance, said: "We haven't got good evidence", "this is not a very exact science at all" and "we don't have good data to answer that with any degree of certainty."
In Germany, Angela Merkel refused to close churches as part of their current lockdown as it raised serious 'constitutional issues', and earlier this year a French high court branded government church closures as unlawful and overturned the ban.
Despite the pressure on both governments, no U-turn from Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been forthcoming, and the Welsh Assembly has refused to provide any reassurances that places of worship will not be closed again in the near future.
'Church ministry is vital'
Pastor Ade Omooba MBE, said: "Never in our history have our churches closed – not during wars, plagues or famines. Instead we have been places of respite and hope.
"The government seems not to understand the very important and long held constitutional position of the independence of church and civil government.
"Churches provide many essential services to their members, local communities, and the nation as a whole. But we can't be relegated to a social service. The motivation and key to our service is our love for Jesus Christ and our care for the whole person, body, mind and soul. The very last thing that should be closed is churches, and then only with their agreement in times of dire emergency for a very short time.
"Church is so much more than a place for individual prayer. It is a place for prayer ministry, sacraments, gathered worship, fellowship, and corporate prayer and intercession. The government should not be preventing these vital ministries."
Rev. David Hathaway, President of Eurovision Mission to Europe, an organization that represents over 50,000 Christians across every denomination in the U.K, said: "The government has failed to recognise the centrality of faith to a Christian's life. Sunday worship and access to church buildings has been treated like a mere hobby or pastime rather than foundational to national and Christian life."
Bishop Michael Nazir-Ali, formerly the Church of England's Bishop of Rochester, said: "Church leaders recognise the seriousness of this pandemic, and that the government need to take the best scientific advice about the measures that are necessary to prevent the spread of the virus, especially to vulnerable groups.
"This task has to be held in tension with the ancient liberties of the church which have been won through hard struggle over the course of our history. These liberties include freedom of belief, expression and worship.
"The principle of the freedom of worship needs to be maintained and churches have been assiduous in maintaining safety in buildings and among worshippers.
"There is widespread unease among many church leaders about the lack of evidence and consultation regarding the ban on collective worship.
"Church leaders see collective worship, not as an optional extra, but as vital to the mental and spiritual health of believers, especially for the lonely and vulnerable."
Dr. Gavin Ashenden, former Honorary Chaplain to the Queen, said: "The context in which unilateral closure of churches and the removal of the right to worship as one's conscience dictates reflects the history of the last 1,000 years of our nation.
"This period has been punctuated by attempts by the government to control, restrict and prohibit the actions of Christian worshippers. From the assassination of the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1170 through to the execution of both Protestant and Catholic dissenters in the 16th century, Christians have fought and died for the right to worship and order their spiritual and civic affairs according to their consciences.
"Church leaders as their successors have a duty both to ensure we are faithful to their memory and sacrifices and in our generation to be faithful to our God and our consciences. Such fidelity sets us in polite but determined opposition to any government that closes the doors of Churches, prohibiting access to the sacraments and our corporate responsibilities to God and to one another."
Find out more about Church lockdown
All content has been loaded.
Join our email list to receive the latest updates for prayer and action.
Find out more about the legal support we're giving Christians.
Help us put the hope of Jesus at the heart of society.
Cookies and web technology
© 2021 CCFON Ltd. All Rights Reserved.
'Christian Concern' is a trading name of CCFON Ltd. CCFON Ltd is registered in England and Wales (Company Number 6628490).
Registered office: 70 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8AX.
Our website uses cookies, usage analysis and other similar tools
We use these tools because they help us to run our website, provide you with content (including video and audio clips), understand how people use our website, make improvements to our services, and promote our work more effectively. This means that we and selected third-party services may store cookies and other similar information on your device, and may analyse your use of our website. Some of these tools are necessary for our website to function as intended but others are optional, and you can choose whether or not to allow them.
Find out more and review your options
Disable optional tools
Core functionality
Analytics and promotion
Our website uses cookies, usage analysis and other technologies. We use these tools because they help us to run our website, provide you with content (including video and audio clips), understand how people use our website, make improvements to our services, and promote our work more effectively. This means that we and selected third-party services may store cookies and other similar information on your device, and may analyse how you use our website. Some of these tools are necessary for our website to function as intended but others are optional, and you can choose whether or not to allow them. You can find out more here.
Certain cookies and other technologies are used on our website to provide core functionality. You can read more about this here. You may be able to use your browser settings to block these tools but if you do, our website may not function as intended.
To enrich your experience of this website, we embed carefully selected content from other platforms. For example, we embed video clips from our YouTube channel, and audio clips from our SoundCloud channel. These third-party platforms may store and use cookies (or similar technology) on your device, and may analyse your use of this site or the embedded content. We do not directly control what technologies they use. You can find out more here. If embedded content is disabled it may affect your experience of this website.
This website uses tools from selected third-party providers (Google and Facebook) to help us understand how people arrive at and use our website, and to measure and improve the effectiveness of some of our promotional activity. These tools may store and use cookies (and similar information) on your device, and analyse your use of this website, and other sites and platforms. These tools help us to improve our services, reach people who may be interested in our work and make better use of our resources but information may be shared with these third-party providers and may be used for their own purposes. You can find out more here.
You can find out more about this website's use of cookies, usage analysis and similar technologies here.


text:
Partial thickness facial burns are very common especially among c
Partial thickness facial burns are very common especially among children. This study compares the effect of standard moist open technique management and a moist closed technique for partial thickness burns of the face.\n\nPatients and methods: Patients with partial-thickness facial burns admitted in the burn Nepicastat price unit, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt in the period from April 2009 to December 2009 were included in this study. They were divided into two groups to receive either open treatment with MEBO (R) (n = 20) or coverage with Aquacel (R) Ag (n = 20). Demographics (age, gender, ethnicity, TBSA, burn areas), length of hospital stay (LOS), rate of infections, time to total healing, frequency of dressing
changes, pain, cost benefit and patient discomfort were compared between the two groups. The long-term outcome (incidence of hypertrophic scarring) was assessed for up to 6 months follow-up period.\n\nResults: There were no significant differences in demographics between the two groups. In the group treated with the Aquacel (R) Ag, the mean time for re-epithelialization was 10.5 days, while it was 12.4 days in the MEBO (R) group (p < 0.05). Frequency of changes, pain and patient discomfort were less with Aquacel (R) Ag. Cost was of no significant
difference between the two groups. Scar quality improved in the Aquacel (R) Ag treatment group. Three and 6 months follow-up was done and long-term outcomes were recorded in both groups.\n\nConclusion: ACY-241 Moist occlusive dressing (Aquacel (R) Ag) significantly improves the management GPCR Compound Library mouse and healing rate of
partial thickness facial burns with better long-term outcome compared to moist open dressing (MEBO (R)). (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd and ISBI. All rights reserved."
"P>A dramatic shift in the durability and reliability of ventricular assist device (VAD) therapy is taking hold due to the newer generations of continuous flow VADs that are either in clinical trials or under consideration by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for commercial approval. To expand the pool of potential mechanical circulatory support (MCS) patients, device reliability will need to prove to be greatly enhanced over previous generations of VADs and functional capacity and quality of life will need to improve substantially over baseline. Improved patient selection should have the simultaneously beneficial effects of improving outcomes while expanding the MCS patient population. The critical factors determining the likelihood of expansion of the MCS field include, but are not limited to, improvements in technology and its reliability, training and education of all advanced heart failure caregivers, improving availability of MCS geographically, and a shift in patient selection to a population more likely to benefit from MCS therapy. (J Card Surg 2010;25:421-424)."
"Objectives: The first total hip replacement (THR) in Nigeria was performed in 1974.
88, 95% CI 2 44-3 41) For those with an ISS >= 16, the OR was
88, 95% CI 2.44-3.41). For those with an ISS >= 16, the OR was 6.53 (95% CI 4.07-10.47). For patients 55 years JQEZ5 mw and older, 52% of nontrauma patients were triaged to the trauma center versus 59% of FTTA positive
and 64% of patients with ISS >= 16 (OR 1.03, 95% CI 0.93-1.15). Patients 55 years and older with an ISS >= 16 had only a slightly increased triage effect (OR 1.67, 95% CI 1.08-2.58) compared with those with an ISS 0 to 15 (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.89-1.12).\n\nConclusions: Whereas FTTA appropriately triaged patients 15 to 54 years old to the trauma center, those 55 years old and older were much less likely to be triaged correctly. The reasons for this finding remain unknown, and further studies are needed to investigate and improve elderly triage."
"Very few cases of mosaic trisomy 13 combined with a monosomy X have been reported. It can be assumed that this website most likely the zygote was 47,XX,+13 and 2 chromosomes (13 and X) were lost simultaneously during an early postzygotic division. Here, we reported a 3-year-old girl with mosaicism of trisomy 13 and monosomy X. The child had a short neck, hypertelorism, depressed nasal ridge, epicanthal fold, mid-facial hypoplasia, thin upper lip, long philtrum, ear anomalies, postaxial polydactyly, atrial septal defect, hydronephrosis, and sensorineural
hearing loss. Her weight and length were consistently below the fifth centile. She demonstrated global developmental delay when evaluated at 10 and 16 months. The range of developmental quotients (DQs) was from 0.6 to 1.1; the personal-social part was the best, and gross motor development was the worst. When evaluated at VS-6063 clinical trial 31 months, the DQs of motor development were from 0.52 to 0.69, the object manipulation subscale was 0.52, the visual-motor integration subscale was
0.59 and the mental DQ was 0.52. Her social-behavior part was the best, language was the worst and the DQs had dropped with growth. Conclusion: This is a case report of global development in a girl with mosaicism of trisomy 13 and monosomy X. The majority of physical anomalies observed tend to be mild and non-life threatening. Her DQs dropped with growth, and the language and mental development were significantly delayed after 30 months."
"Species in the Myrtaceae family are used in folk medicine to treat gastrointestinal disorders, infectious diseases and hemorrhagic conditions and are known for their essential oil contents. Gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to characterize the chemical composition of essential oils of the leaves, stem bark and flowers of Myrcia tomentosa (Aubl.) DC., as well as to assess the chemical variability in the constituents of the essential oils of the leaf. Soil and foliar analyses were also performed to determine the mineral compositions.
A gradual increase of wound fluid nitrates, NO(x) and malondialde
A gradual increase of wound fluid nitrates, NO(x) and malondialdehyde suggested the increases of both NO and free oxygen radicals production. Interestingly, wound fluid nitrites peaked at the first day decreasing to the corresponding plasma levels thereafter.
Wound fluid nitrite to nitrate molar ratio gradually decreased and negatively correlated both with the number of apoptotic cells (r = -0.752, p < 0.05) and malondialdehyde (r = -0.694, p < 0.05) levels. In conclusion, the inversely proportional relation between nitrite to nitrate molar ratio and both malondialdehyde and apoptotic cell number indicated a mutual relationship between NO metabolism, AZ 628 oxidative cell damages and cell apoptosis at the wound site early after the cutaneous wound. Moreover, the obtained findings suggest that measurement of both nitrites and nitrates contribute to better insight into overall wound NO metabolism. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved."
"Scytalidium dimidiatum selleck compound is mainly responsible for human skin and nail infections but the mould has also been reported for invasive infections in immunocompromised individuals. We report a young immunocompetent individual diagnosed with
invasive non-traumatic Scytalidium dimidiatum infection involving the left orbital cavity and maxillary sinus."
"The objective of the study was to assess the feasibility and outcome of laparoscopic surgery for management of extremely large ovarian cysts using the SAND balloon catheter. From January 2006 to December 2009,25 patients with large cystic adnexal tumors underwent laparoscopic-assisted surgery using the SAND balloon catheter. Median (range) patient age was 43 (20-68) years, body mass index was 25 (19-32), mass size was 26 cm (15-60 cm), duration of the surgical
procedure was 60(30-300) minutes), and blood loss was 30(10-100) mL. There were no major surgical complications. Intra-abdominal leakage of cyst fluid was observed in only 1 case (4%). With proper patient selection, the SAND balloon catheter can be extremely useful in laparoscopic removal of very large adnexal masses, without intraperitoneal spillage. Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology (2011) 18,779-784 (C) 2011 AAGL. All rights reserved."
"Purpose: The purpose selleck kinase inhibitor of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcome of arthroscopic suture fixation for tibial eminence fractures in adults. Methods: Twelve patients with a mean age of 29.9 years (range, 18 to 45 years) were prospectively followed up after arthroscopic suture fixation for tibial eminence fractures. Along with clinical examination, Lysholm, Tegner, and International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) rating scales were used to evaluate the patients. Anteroposterior knee laxity was measured with a Rolimeter (Aircast, Vista, CA), and range of motion was measured with a goniometer. Results: Patients were followed up for a mean of 50 months (range, 25 to 69 months).
"Background: Coactivator-associated arginine methyltransfe
"Background: Coactivator-associated arginine methyltransferase 1 (CARM1) belongs to the protein arginine methyltransferase family. CARM1 has been reported to be associated
with high grade tumors in breast cancer. It still remains unknown the expression pattern of CARM1 in breast cancer and its relationships with clinicopathological characteristics and molecular subtypes.\n\nMethods: Two hundred forty-seven invasive breast cancer cases were collected and prepared for tissue array. There were thirty-seven tumors with benign glandular epithelium adjacent to the tumors among PND-1186 ic50 these cases. Molecular subtype and CARM1 expression were investigated using immunohistochemistry.\n\nResults: Cell staining was observed in the cytoplasm and/or nucleus. Staining for CARM1 was significantly stronger in adenocarcinoma compared with adjacent benign epithelium. There is a significant correlation between CARM1 overexpression with young age, high grade, estrogen receptor (ER) and progesterone receptor (PR) negative, increased p53 expression, and high Ki-67 index. Our study demonstrated CARM1 overexpression was associated with an increase in the protein expression of HER2. Furthermore, our data indicated CARM1-overexpression rate
were remarkably higher in HER2 subtype (69.6%), luminal B subtype (59.6%) and TN subtype (57.1%) compared with luminal A subtype (41.3%).\n\nConclusions: CARM1 expression PF-04929113 chemical structure AR-13324 chemical structure was increased in invasive breast cancer. CARM1 overexpression was associated with poorly characterized clinicopathologic parameters and HER2 overexpression. There were significant differences between different molecular subtypes in their relationship to CARM1 overexpression. Our results support the value of using
CARM1 in prognostic stratification of breast cancer patients and its potential therapeutic implications in targeting treatment."
"The incidence of invasive fungal infection has increased significantly. A majority of the infections is caused by yeast. Clinically important yeast show species-specific differences in susceptibility to antifungal agents therefore rapid and accurate identification of the pathogen is essential. We aimed to validate pyrosequencing of 40 nucleotides in the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) for species identification of yeast. Amplification of ITS2 and pyrosequencing of targeted region were performed in 940 clinical isolates of yeast. A local database containing the 40 nucleotide ITS2 sequences of 33 species of medically important yeast was generated using published sequences of type strains. The sequencing results were searched against the local database using the BLAST algorithm to identify the species of yeast. The length of sequences obtained from pyrosequencing averaged between 4061 nucleotides.
20 (OS), P = 0 23 (DFS)] Subset analysis (n = 420) on vinorelbin
20 (OS), P = 0.23 (DFS)]. Subset analysis (n = 420) on vinorelbine-cisplatin gave similar results.\n\nConclusions: The prognostic effect of high TUBB3 expression in patients
with R-NSCLC has been validated. We were unable to confirm a predictive effect for TUBB3."
"Rationale, aims and objectivesLoss of situation awareness (SA) by health professionals during handover is a major threat to patient safety in perinatal care. SA refers to knowing what is going on around. Adequate handover communication and process may support situation assessment, a precursor of SA. This study describes current practices and opinions of perinatal handover to identify potential improvements.\n\nMethodsStructured direct observations of shift-to-shift patient handovers (n=70) in an academic perinatal setting were used to measure handover communication (presence and order of SB203580 levels of SA: current situation, background, assessment and recommendation) and process (duration, interruptions/distractions, eye contact, active inquiry and reading information back). Afterwards, receivers' opinions of handover communication (n=51) were measured by means of a questionnaire.\n\nResultsAll Liproxstatin-1 supplier levels of SA were present
in 7% of handovers, the current situation in 86%, the background in 99%, an assessment in 24% and a recommendation in 46%. In 77% of handovers the background was mentioned first, followed by the current situation. Forty-four percent of handovers took 2 minutes or more per patient. In 52% distractions occurred, in 43% there was no active inquiry, in 32% no eye contact and in 97% information was not read back. The overall mean of the receivers' opinions of handover communication was 4.1 (standard deviation0.7; scale 1-5, where 5 is excellent).\n\nConclusionsPerinatal handovers are currently at risk for inadequate situation assessment because of variability and limitations in handover communication and process. However, receivers' opinions of handover communication were very positive, indicating a lack of awareness of patient safety threats during handover. Therefore, the staff's awareness
of current limitations should be raised, for example through video reflection or simulation Alvocidib training."
"A large skull is disadvantageous to animals that move quickly in three-dimensional space, such as fishes and birds in water or air. A cerebral neocortex with a six-layered sheet has not evolved, most likely due to the limited cranial space. Instead of the laminar cortex, telencephalic nuclear masses seem to have evolved as the pallium in teleost fishes. We consider that the nuclear masses contain rather simple neural circuits sharing a skeleton of simple circuits in the mammalian cortex, which have been elaborated by additional circuits in mammals. Such basic similarities at the connectional level shared by nuclear and cortical pallium might underlie similar or equivalent functions.
The spatially explicit insights into patterns of cropland change
The spatially explicit insights into patterns of cropland change and in particular into hotspots of change derived from multiple methods provide useful information for decision-makers."
"We first employ multi-scale time asymmetry (MSA) to analyze typical chaotic signals from Schuster maps and indicate that the MSA method can characterize the distinct time asymmetry of chaotic time series. Then we propose a modified MSA method, i.e., multi-scale weighted time asymmetry, and a novel time asymmetry index to investigate fractal Brownian motion signals and demonstrate its effects on discriminating between fractal signals with different Hurst exponents. Considering that the dynamic behavior of slug flow exhibits
chaotic features, we apply the MSA method to analyze experimental signals from a gas-liquid hypoxia-inducible factor pathway two-phase flow and find that slug flow presents a unique time asymmetric structure. In addition, we further explore the mechanism this website leading to the formation of time asymmetry in terms of adaptive optimal kernel time-frequency representation. The results suggest that the MSA method can be a useful tool for detecting the complex flow structure underlying a gas-liquid two-phase flow."
"The association of
arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) with the roots of Lindenbergia philippensis (Cham.) Benth., sampled from a Zn-contaminated settling pond at a zinc smelter, significantly enhanced Zn accumulation (72,540 +/- A 5,092 mg kg(-1) dry weight) in rhizosphere sediment amended with 1,000 mg L-1 of Zn sulfate solution compared to fungicide-treatments that suppressed AMF colonization. This can be explained by a significant proportion of Zn being found in rectangular crystals that were associated with the root mucilaginous sheath. Despite this, all treatments maintained KPT-8602 in vivo the same Zn coordination geometry in both Zn oxidation state and the coordinated neighbouring atoms. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) showed a Zn(II) oxidation state as a
core atom and associated with six oxygen atoms symmetrically arranged in an octahedral coordination and coordinated with sulfur. The results may indicate a role for AMF in enhancing Zn immobilization in the rhizosphere of indigenous plants that successfully colonize Zn mining and smelting disposal sites."
"Motivation: DOOSS (Data Overlaid On Secondary Structures) is a tool for visualizing annotated secondary structures of large single-stranded nucleotide sequences (such as full-length virus genomes). The purpose of this tool is to assist investigators in evaluating the biological relevance of secondary structures within particular sequences."
"BACKGROUND: The AEBP1 (adipocyte enhancer binding protein) gene has two isoforms: AEBP1, the shorter of the two isoforms, and Aclp (aortic carboxypeptidase-like protein). Aclp-/- mice demonstrate a ventral wall defect that is similar to gastroschisis in humans.
The synthetic solutions possessed the same composition in these i
The synthetic solutions possessed the same composition in these inhibitory compounds as diluted effluents from olive oil mill and winery industries. The process was performed in a laboratory scale digester containing anaerobic sludge from the Urban Reclamation Station of Toledo (Spain). The comparison of both individual factors and interactions between factors showed that the addition of olive oil at moderate concentrations (up to 0.5% w/w) did not change the performance of the process in comparison with that observed when feeding to the system a model solution (51.5%
COD removal, Bromosporine molecular weight 0.65 L biogas day(-1)). However, low concentrations of ethanol or phenol (250 and 150 mg L(-1), respectively) almost completely inhibited the methanogenic phase. Moreover, a strong interaction between ethanol and phenol concentrations on COD removal was observed.\n\nCONCLUSION: The experimental results showed quantitatively the importance of some Rabusertib research buy inhibitory compounds on anaerobic
treatment of both synthetic solutions and real wastewaters from olive oil mill and winery industries. Inhibitory effects are closely related to both the organic loads and the anaerobic bioreactor used. (C) 2009 Society of Chemical Industry"
"Objective: Perimenopausal women are at high risk for pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI) diseases. In the present study, the expression of VIP in the vaginal epithelium of 70 perimenopausal women was correlated with the severity of POP with or without SUI.\n\nMaterials and Methods: Seventy biopsy specimens from the anterior vaginal epithelium were obtained from postmenopausal patients. Immunohistochemical labeling
for vasoactive intestinal MI-503 mouse peptide (VIP) and hematoxylin and eosin staining were performed. The VIP innervation was then compared between eight patient groups. Semiquantitative analysis of VIP protein by Western blotting was performed and compared between the eight patient groups.\n\nResults: The results of the immunohistochemical study showed that the intensity of VIP-immunoreactivity (VIP-ir) in the eight groups was as follows (in decreasing order): Control; POPI; POP II; POP II + SUI; POP HI; POP IV and POP lit + Sill; and POP IV + SUI. The intensity of VIP-ir was obviously weak and similar among the POP IV, POP In + SUI, and POP IV + Sill groups. This result was validated by the Western blotting analysis. The level of the VIP peptide also deceased in POP patients and was as follows (in decreasing order): Control; POPI; POP II and POP II + SUI; POP III and POP III + Sill; and POP IV and POP IV + SUI.
Results – Based on RT-PCR of 13 AQPs examined, AQP1, 3, 4, 5
\n\nResults. – Based on RT-PCR of 13 AQPs examined, AQP1, 3, 4, 5 and 11 were expressed in human gastric cancers
or normal gastric tissues, and AQP3, 4 and 5 exhibited differential expression between human gastric carcinomas and corresponding normal tissues, which was confirmed by Western blot analyses. lmmunohistochemical assay showed that AQP4 protein was expressed mainly in the membrane 3-deazaneplanocin A order of parietal cell and chief cell in the normal gastric mucosa, and absent in carcinoma tissues. AQP3 and AQP5 were detected remarkably stronger in the carcinoma tissues than that in normal mucosa by immunofluorescence. AQP3 expression in cases with undifferentiated tumor was more than that in cases with well-differentiated tumor. Both AQP3 and AQP5 expression were associated with lymph node C59 molecular weight metastasis and lymphovascular invasion in patients.\n\nConclusions. – These findings of differential expressions of AQPs and their correlation with clinicopathologic characteristics implicated AQPs
might play a role in human gastric carcinogenesis. (C) 2009 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved."
"Reproductive functions can be modulated by both stimulatory and inhibitory primer pheromones released by conspecifics. Many stimulatory primer pheromones have been documented, but relatively few inhibitory primer pheromones have been reported in vertebrates. The sea lamprey male sex pheromone system presents an advantageous model to explore the stimulatory and inhibitory primer pheromone functions in vertebrates since several pheromone components have been identified. We hypothesized that a candidate sex pheromone component, 7 alpha, 12 alpha-dihydroxy-5a-cholan-3-one-24-oic acid (3 keto-allocholic acid or 3kACA), exerts priming effects through the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis. To test this hypothesis, we measured the peptide concentrations and gene expressions of lamprey gonadotropin releasing hormones (lGnRH) and the HPG output in immature male sea lamprey exposed to waterborne 3kACA. Exposure to waterborne 3kACA altered neuronal activation
Galardin concentration markers such as jun and jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and lGnRH mRNA levels in the brain. Waterborne 3kACA also increased lGnRH-III, but not lGnRH-I or -II, in the forebrain. In the plasma, 3kACA exposure decreased all three lGnRH peptide concentrations after 1 h exposure. After 2 h exposure, 3kACA increased lGnRH-I and -III, but decreased lGnRH-II peptide concentrations in the plasma. Plasma lGnRH peptide concentrations showed differential phasic patterns. Group housing condition appeared to increase the averaged plasma lGnRH levels in male sea lamprey compared to isolated males. Interestingly, 15 alpha-hydroxyprogesterone (15 alpha-P) concentrations decreased after prolonged 3kACA exposure (at least 24 h). To our knowledge, this is the only known synthetic vertebrate pheromone component that inhibits steroidogenesis in males.
"Background Primary care is an ideal setting to treat ped
"Background. Primary care is an ideal setting to treat pediatric obesity. Effective, low-intensity ( smaller than = 25 contact hours over 6 months) interventions that reduce standardized body mass index (z-BMI) and can be delivered by primary care providers are needed. Objective. This pilot randomized controlled trial investigated the effect of 3 low-intensity ( smaller than = 25 contact
hours Blebbistatin mw over 6 months) pediatric obesity treatments on z-BMI. Methods. Twenty-two families (children 8.0 +/- 1.8 years, z-BMI of 2.34 +/- 0.48) were randomized into 1 of 3, 6-month, low-intensity conditions: newsletter (N), newsletter and growth monitoring (N + GM), or newsletter and growth GS-1101 concentration monitoring plus family-based behavioral counseling (N + GM + BC). Anthropometrics and child eating and leisure-time behaviors were measured. Results. Mixed-factor analyses of variance found a significant (P smaller than .05) main effect of time for z-BMI and servings per day of sugar sweetened beverages, with both decreasing over time. Conclusion.
Low-intensity obesity treatments can reduce z-BMI and may be more feasible in primary care."
"The PTH receptor (PTHR1) is expressed on osteoblasts and responds to PTH or PTHrP in an endocrine or autocrine/paracrine manner, respectively. A microarray study carried out on PTHR1-positive osteoblasts (Kusa 4b10 cells) identified the cysteine-X-cysteine (CXC) family chemokine ligand 1 (Cxcl1) as a novel immediate PTH/PTHrP-responsive gene. Cxcl1 is a potent neutrophil chemoattractant with recognized roles in angiogenesis and inflammation, but a role in bone biology has not been described. Cxcl1 mRNA levels were up-regulated 1 h after either PTH or PTHrP treatment of differentiated Kusa 4b10 osteoblasts (15-fold) 3-deazaneplanocin A and mouse calvarial osteoblasts (160-fold) and in rat metaphyseal bone (5-fold) 1 h after a single sc injection of PTH. Furthermore, PTH treatment stimulated a 10-fold increase in secreted Cxcl1
protein by both Kusa 4b10 cells and calvarial osteoblasts. Immunohistochemistry and PCR demonstrated that CXCR2, the receptor for Cxcl1, is highly expressed in osteoclast precursors (hemopoietic cells) but is predominantly undetectable in the osteoblast lineage, suggesting that osteoblast-derived Cxcl1 may act as a chemoattractant for osteoclast precursors. Confirming this hypothesis, recombinant Cxcl1 dose-dependently stimulated migration of osteoclast precursors in cell culture studies, as did conditioned media from Kusa 4b10 cells treated with PTH. These data indicate that local action through the PTHR1 could stimulate cells of the osteoblast lineage to release a chemokine capable of attracting osteoclast precursors to the bone environment.
Low baseline CD4 cell count < 100 cells/L was significantly re
Low baseline CD4 cell count < 100 cells/L was significantly related with HIV-related ophthalmic manifestations and CMV retinitis at presentation (P < 0.013). 105 patients were followed for 6 months or more and the mean follow-up was 4.8 years. There was no significant change
in visual acuity compared with baseline (P = 0.13). 20 (19.0%) patients had one eye with final visual acuity of 20/200 or worse and the leading cause for poor vision was CMV retinitis. 11 learn more (10.5%) patients died during the follow-up due to complications of HIV/AIDS. The presence of HIV retinal microangiopathy was significantly associated with mortality (P = 0.005).\n\nConclusions:\n\nCMV retinitis remains the main HIV-related ocular disease in the post-HAART era. HIV retinal microangiopathy might be an important prognostic factor for mortality. Appropriate ophthalmic monitoring is justified to detect for ophthalmic complications in HIV
patients regardless of HAART use in order for prompt initiation of treatment."
"In this paper, the issue of designing an iterative-detection-and-decoding CDK assay (IDD)-aided receiver, relying on the low-complexity probabilistic data association (PDA) method, is addressed for turbo-coded multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) systems using general M-ary modulations. We demonstrate that the classic candidate-search-aided bit-based extrinsic log-likelihood ratio (LLR) calculation method is not applicable to the family of PDA-based detectors. Additionally, we reveal that, in contrast to the interpretation in the existing literature, the output symbol probabilities of existing
PDA algorithms are not the true a posteriori probabilities (APPs) but, rather, PR-171 research buy the normalized symbol likelihoods. Therefore, the classic relationship, where the extrinsic LLRs are given by subtracting the a priori LLRs from the a posteriori LLRs, does not hold for the existing PDA-based detectors. Motivated by these revelations, we conceive a new approximate Bayesian-theorem-based logarithmic-domain PDA (AB-Log-PDA) method and unveil the technique of calculating bit-based extrinsic LLRs for the AB-Log-PDA, which facilitates the employment of the AB-Log-PDA in a simplified IDD receiver structure. Additionally, we demonstrate that we may dispense with inner iterations within the AB-Log-PDA in the context of IDD receivers. Our complexity analysis and numerical results recorded for Nakagami-m fading channels demonstrate that the proposed AB-Log-PDA-based IDD scheme is capable of achieving a performance comparable with that of the optimal maximum a posteriori (MAP)-detector-based IDD receiver, while imposing significantly lower computational complexity in the scenarios considered.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Congo's Dapper Fashion Scene Will Change The Way You Think About Clothing
"The streets of Kinshasa are the runways."
by Lana Guineay 24 February 2017
Brought to you by SBS
Watch States of Undress now on SBS On Demand, where former model Hailey Gates explores global fashion & issues the industry often ignores, showing us what the world wears & why.
"This is wild," says Hailey Gates, host of Viceland's new series States Of Undress. The show contemplates fashion as a litmus test of a country's social climate, and she's in the middle of a street in Kinshasa (capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo) surrounded by a cheering crowd. They're not there for her. They're fans of the man by her side, Kadhitoza, who is "king" of local style community The Sapeurs. He's often called the "boss of fashion".
"It's like being with a Beatle!" says Gates.
It's easy to think of fashion as something that happens on runways in Paris and New York, or as part of the fast fashion mega-industry, but it's here on the streets that style is at its most socially revealing. While States Of Undress takes a world tour of lesser-known fashion weeks, the majority of airtime explores the tensions and joys of everyday fashion, where style moves beyond simply 'what we wear to survive' to an expression of identity, community, and innovation.
Often government-funded, fashion weeks are meant for an international audience; they're about how you want the world to see you. The streets are how you see yourself. Driven by motivations other than profit, indie designers and communities are hot beds of experimentation and resourcefulness.
Here are some of the communities profiled by Gates in States of Undress:
The Runways Of Kinshasa
To be stylish in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is to be a Sapeur, an extravagant dandy of the sub-Saharan region. The movement began at the end of the 19th Century during the period of brutal colonisation by the Belgian and French, when European clothing was used as payment in lieu of money.
Congolese men adopted the clothing with such enthusiasm it "became an act of defiance against their subjugation". The modern movement continues the tradition, with a mix of European labels teamed with local designs, prints, and ideas of style (and loads of swagger). La Sape also provides locals with jobs, and has grown offshoots like the 'eco-sapeurs' who make clothing from 100 percent natural materials.
In a country where more than half of the population lives on less than a dollar a day, where violence and human rights issues continue, fashion might seem trivial. But it's really a way to help cope with a society torn apart by war.
"Getting dressed and walking around is an activity here; the streets of Kinshasa are the runways," Gates says. "The street fashion and the commitment to dressing up, even in the midst of volatility, has the power to transform these streets into a point of national pride."
(Featured in season 1, episode 6)
Tackling Censorship In China
China is the world's largest manufacturing power, producing an astonishing 65 percent of the world's clothing. 'Mass production' and China may be synonymous, but the landscape is changing. Faced with a slowing economy, the factory model is being transformed under the government's Made in China 2025 initiative, where emphasis is shifting from a nation of manufacturers to a nation of creators exporting local ideas and designs. But it's a complex climate for designers, with a precedent of outspoken artists having issues with the government, as well as ever-present censorship.
Internet censorship in China is widely considered to be the most extreme in the world, but this isn't stopping designer Wang Shou-ying. The small town 25-year-old gained celebrity status when she posted photos of her DIY creations on Chinese social media site Sina Weibo. The self-described "fairy" is known for her unconventional creations that use materials like trash bags, food, and packaging.
Then there's Beijing artist Kong Ning, who uses fashion to make statements about the environment in this precarious context. An ex-criminal defence lawyer, Kong uses over-the-top creations to put the spotlight on environmental issues. Featuring hundreds of eggs and facemasks, Kong's dresses draw attention to issues like air pollution, which is estimated to kill an estimated 4,000 people in China a day.
Palestine's First Lingerie Company
What would you do for a cute bra? This is a question few of us have to consider in Australia, but for Palestine's first lingerie company, it's a serious consideration. Given conflict, restrictions on freedom of movement, high import taxes, and a complicated postal service, the founders of Ramallah-based Kenz face a battle to make the simple act of buying nice underwear easier for Middle Eastern women.
Christina Ganim and Nicola Isabel launched Kenz after experiencing the frustrations of buying lingerie in the West Bank where it's almost impossible to go into a store and find something that fits. Women either face slow, expensive and unreliable imports by shipping high-end labels to a friend in nearby Jerusalem or Amman, or rely on local markets with limited, sometimes smuggled goods and awkward experiences with the older men who run the stalls.
While the Kenz founders face daily challenges, including travel restrictions and the logistics of running distribution from a warehouse space in Dubai, it's a challenge they're more than ready to face to bring high-end undies to Middle Eastern women through a discreet online store.
Lana Guineay is a writer, editor, coffee drinker. She's sometimes known to be Friggen Awesome.
To learn more about Hailey Gates' journey into the fascinating world of global fashion, head to the States Of Undress page on SBS On Demand.
tagsChina documentaries fashion SBS On Demand travel


I'm Alexandra Pirici and I'm an artist with a background in choreography and dance and working also a lot in the visual arts. The new work Co-natural that is now on view at the New Museum is an ongoing action with live performers and a holographic image. And I think it tries to explore the concept of presence and self and idea of a body and where it starts and where it ends and whether its something unitary as let's say as posited by the western concept of the individual or whether it's something that is fragmented and distributed across many bodies and many species and many histories and times and other spaces. So I think it's a work about fragmentation and dispersion but also about relation and entanglements.
I was also interested in working with this disembodied presence, which is the holographic image, not in opposition to the live bodies of the performers but as a compliment to it, as an addition and as something that can be in alliance with the live body in the exhibition space. Because I think it also complicates what performative works can do in the exhibition space and the very notion of a body and of liveliness also and of life in general. As a structure, the work gradually accumulates in space in terms of presence so it starts with the image alone, with this holographic presence alone and one performer adds for an hour and three performers add for another hour, five performers, then again five performers, three performers, one performer and the image alone sometimes. So I think it made sense, the structure made sense in relation to the concept as this gradual build up and accumulation and this this gradual deconstruction.
So it's like unfolding and then folding back. Some of the material repeats into the next hour and in that sense it's a bit like an evolutionary process where some information stays, some is taken out or is left behind, some of it mutates or is re-contextualized by the new bodies that come into space.


text:
Altare (, , L'Atæ in local dialect) is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Savona in the Italian region Liguria, located about  west of Genoa and about  northwest of Savona. As of 1 January 2009, it had a population of 2,160 and an area of .

Altare borders the following municipalities: Cairo Montenotte, Carcare, Mallare, Quiliano, and Savona.

Geography
Altare is just west of the Cadibona pass, which at  divides the Ligurian Alps from the Ligurian Apennines. Also called pass of Altare, it is accessed from the coast by the Via Nazionale Piemonte, winding up from Savona and crossing into Piedmont towards the north Italian plain.

History
Altare was home to an ancient glassmaking tradition, dating back to the Middle Ages. The origin of Altare glassworks is still unknown. Oral tradition has it that the art was spread from Northern France by Benedictine monks. Samuel Kurinsky  posits that the original glassmakers were Sephardic Jews, based on the secretive character of their techniques and the distinct identity of the glassmakers as opposed to the rest of the population.   If that is the case, they were completely assimilated, except for their traditional self-distinction.
Altarist glassmakers were organized in guilds, not unlike other medieval craftsmen. The guild, known as the University maintained a very strict control over the glassmakers' techniques. Unlike the Venetians though, Altare was a net exporter of know-how throughout its history, as the local guild was never able to prevent the migration of its people to other places. Sometimes it even encouraged it. The importance of Altare revolves around this difference. For example, it appears that Giobatta Da Costa's invention of flint glass took place in London, while he worked for the Ravenscroft manufactory in 1674. Altarist glassmakers operated in France, at Orléans and Nevers and one of them, Bernard Perrot went on to become master of the Royal Glassworks in Orléans, after patenting many innovative techniques. The Museum of Glass in Villa Rosa at Altare preserves many pieces of fine glass produced during this tradition.

References

Further reading
 The Glass Museum of Altare
 An introduction to the history of Altare
 Chirico, Mariateresa. Il Museo Dell'arte Vetraria Altarese. Albenga, Litografia Bacchetta. 2009

Cities and towns in Liguria
Articles which contain graphical timelines

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


I had the great pleasure of judging the Addys in Pittsburgh over the weekend. It was my first trip to the big city, so I thought I'd quickly share 10 things I learned while there!
1. The first three people I talked to had a connection to SC. One was to the City of Columbia, one to Clemson University and one to the University of South Carolina. And so many people talked about our beaches – Pawley's Island was a hot topic.
2. The city explodes out of a tunnel. This was very cool and should be experienced at night.
4. Pittsburgh is a haven for sports enthusiasts. And it's sports of all kinds. I even learned about the Canadian board game Crokinole from a young woman at dinner who curls. As in curling. And I'm not talking about her hair.
5. At night, it is really cold.
6. I didn't find an accent here. This was a surprise.
7. The downtown area was described to me as the same shape as a piece of pie. This goes right along with all the food I ate. Sheesh. I might have gained five pounds in three days.
8. The people are so nice. You kind of think the South owns warm and hospitable. Wrong.
9. Did you know the Steelers have more super bowl wins than any other NFL team? I heard this more than once.
10. Brand new snow shovels were everywhere. Each one stood beside a bucket inside every place of business. It was like a number of flags had been planted to announce that winter has finally commenced.
Hope to go back again sometime… when it's warmer!
See Fallingwater or the Warhol museum? There are two reasons to go back!
Saw lots of work – and a few restaurants. Definitely need to go back!
And snow… I saw snow!
What! no mention of premanti brother's?
did you go to mount washington? beautiful.
let me know the next time you're up there. great food spots.
tons of integrated social media. google maps is in 3d. and there is 4g and lte.


text:
Director of Federal Child Care Policy
The Director of Federal Child Care Policy will provide vision and leadership to maintain and grow the Center's Child Care/Early Learning work – as a strategist, advocate, spokesperson, and fundraiser working at federal, state, and local levels. This work will include the continued cultivation of a coalition of advocates, researchers, analysts, and policy makers to further the Center's goals and raise the level of public awareness about critical issues affecting outcomes particularly for (but not limited to) low-income women and women of color, as well as their children and families.
Reporting to the Vice President for Income Security & Child Care/Early Learning, the Director will oversee a small team and also work collaboratively with colleagues in other program areas as well as with Communications and Development staff.
The National Women's Law Center fights for gender justice — in the courts, in public policy, and in our society — working across the issues that are central to the lives of women and girls.
We use the law in all its forms to change culture and drive solutions to the gender inequity that shapes our society and to break down the barriers that harm all of us — especially those who face multiple forms of discrimination, including women of color, LGBTQ people, and low-income women and families.
For more than 45 years, we have been on the leading edge of every major legal and policy victory for women, and we need you with us to continue this fight.
• Directs the Center's federal child care advocacy efforts, developing and implementing policy goals and federal research agenda, and advocacy strategies; serving as a thought leader; and helping to develop messages and strategic communications to advance policy agendas.
• Works closely with the Director of State Child Care Policy and Director of Community Partnerships to drive comprehensive child care strategy, including coordinating on research, policy, advocacy, and outreach.
• Directs all Federal government relations/policy/strategy on Child Care, including:
o Building and maintaining Hill, and Administration relationships;
o Monitoring Legislative development and providing expert /technical assistance to Hill and Administration staff
o Leading the National Child Care & Early Learning Coalition, including working with coalition partners to develop and execute Federal government relations strategy and Federal legislative and administrative policy ideas that advance equity,
o Participate in developing & executing NWLC strategies for child care funding and policy,
o Develop new research in partnership with the Research team, other members of the Child Care and Early Learning team, and outside partners (as appropriate) to advance Federal policy goals.
• Serve as one of the NWLC staff who represents the Center on child care/early learning with lawmakers nationally, with press in press interviews, at public events, conferences and meetings, and in funder meetings;
• In partnership with Center's leadership and Development staff, manage a portfolio of federally-focused funding relationships, responsible for funder reporting and engagement;
• Collaborate closely with Director of Community Partnerships & Director of State Policy on the Child Care and Income Security Team to support movement building in child care and inform state research and policy agenda.
• Work in close coordination with key Law Center staff, including those on the broader Child Care/Early Learning & Income Security team, other Law Center staff engaged in federal and state advocacy work, the Research team, the Campaign and Digital Strategies Team, to provide information and support on federal and state legislation and policy, and strategically and collectively further the Center's work;
The ideal candidate will possess:
▪ A minimum of seven years of relevant experience in policy advocacy, program development experience, and demonstrated success working on a mix of advocacy, research, policy formulation, and analysis.
▪ Experience engaging a coalition of advocacy partners is required, and experience leading a coalition of advocacy partners is preferred, including experience building consensus across political spectrums, leading coalition-wide advocacy efforts, and developing a coalition-wide agenda; demonstrated ability to provide expert technical assistance to state advocates and policymakers;
▪ Deep working knowledge of key federal legislation and regulations, legislative processes, and state policies that relate to child care/early learning;
▪ Superior oral and written communications skills, including the ability to explain the Center's work in compelling terms and to communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively, and experience as a spokesperson with a range of constituents, including media;
▪ Outstanding time management and organizational skills, with careful attention to detail, and a demonstrated ability to manage multi-faceted projects and perform well independently with grace under pressure in a fast-paced, multi-tasking environment;
▪ A collaborative and collegial approach, and an ability and desire to work in a diverse and team-based environment, an orientation to the work that recognizes and values the contributions of all team members, and demonstrated success applying an equity lens to leadership and management;
▪ A high degree of self-motivation and an entrepreneurial ability to identify and seize opportunities; and
▪ Demonstrated ability to influence and engage diverse audiences and to build long-term collaborative relationships with key organizational and individual partners.
Additional preferred skills and knowledge:
▪ A master's degree or a law degree is desirable;
▪ Demonstrated fundraising experience strongly preferred, including developing and framing projects to appeal to a broad range of potential supporters;
• Demonstrated commitment to and experience working on gender and racial equity and centering communities of color in their approach to work.
Key Relationships
The Director reports to the Vice President for Income Security, & Child Care/ Early Leaning and works closely with other members of the team as well as teams across the Center including the Development and Communications teams. Supervises Coalition and Federal Policy Manager.
A minimum salary of $103,149 will be provided to the successful candidate who has at least 7 years of experience directly relevant to this role, consistent with the National Women's Law Center's compensation framework.
The Center offers a comprehensive benefits package, and four weeks of annual vacation.
To apply for this position, please forward a cover letter outlining your interests and qualifications, resume and three supervisory references. Resumes should include exact start and end dates (month and year) of employment. Please send application materials via e-mail to: DirectorFCCP@nwlc.org and include the position title in the subject line. Electronic submissions are preferred. Applications accepted until position is filled.
The National Women's Law Center is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action employer and values a diverse workforce. We strongly encourage and seek applications from people with disabilities; people of all gender identities and sexual orientations; people of color; and veterans.
If you require reasonable accommodations during any part of the hiring process, please email us at humanresources@nwlc.org.


Shop for Chest Midnight Accent - top sales, deals, offers, and Accent Chest Midnight discounts are available 24/7/365 at TopDealSearcher.com.
Similar Midnight Accent Chest searches: Gold Womans Wedding Band, Fathers Day Bear, Summit Rotary Switch.
TopDealSearcher.com - 500 000+ popular items with best price. Compare prices of Midnight Accent Chest online stores free and easily - start your shopping now and have fun!


There have been many attempts to summarise the events that have taken place at the climate talks in Paris in recent weeks so this post will not attempt to do this yet again. For those interested I suggest you visit this link. Instead, I want to draw attention to the work of the scientists who dedicate their research to climate science in the Arctic and Antarctic. As somebody who is interested in environmental history and environmental change their work is of great interest to me as studying ice cores can give us an insight in to the atmospheric make up of past climates and we can then draw up models for how climate may change in the future. Ice core analysis is a scientific reflection of the humanities based environmental history work, which concentrates principally on archival research, as is the convention of professional historical practice. However, the best environmental histories incorporate other methodologies within final papers and climate modeling through ice core analysis exemplifies one set of studies that environmental historians could make use of when writing climate histories.
← Why bother understanding the historic environment?


text:
Home / Cruise Lines / P&O Cruises UK / Azura
Ship: Azura
Departure: Friday, March 17, 2023
Departs: Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Returns: Valletta
way trip
1 Friday, March 17, 2023 Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain Embark 12:00 AM
Santa Cruz de Tenerife (commonly known as Santa Cruz) is the capital the Autonomous Community of the Canary Islands. The port is of great importance and is the communications hub between Europe, Africa, and the Americas, with cruise ships arriving from many nations. Not surprisingly, the city has a real cosmopolitan mix due to immigrants from Latin America, Africa and Western Europe. Read more about Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
2 Saturday, March 18, 2023 Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain 12:00 AM 10:00 PM
3 Sunday, March 19, 2023 Lanzarote, Spain 9:00 AM 6:00 PM
Lanzarote, the easternmost of the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, lies about 125 km off the African coast. Due to its mild, dry climate it is regarded as a perfect year-round destination. Lack of erosion means that the volcanic landscape appears much as it did just after past eruptions. Read more about Lanzarote, Spain
4 Monday, March 20, 2023 At Sea
5 Tuesday, March 21, 2023 Funchal, Portugal 7:00 AM 6:00 PM
Funchal is the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira an archipelago 880 SW of Portugal and 600 km NW of Morocco, in the north Atlantic. Funchal's harbour offers plazas lined with shops, colourful houses spilling down hillsides, due to its almost amphitheatre-like formation, and a profusion of flowers. For a fine view of the magnificent bay, take the unique downhill basket sledge ride. Read more about Funchal, Portugal
6 Wednesday, March 22, 2023 At Sea
7 Thursday, March 23, 2023 Cadiz, Spain 8:00 AM 8:00 PM
Cadiz is a city and port in SW Spain. It is the capital of Cadiz Province, an autonomous community of Andalusia. Due to its small size one is never more than a few blocks from the sea, and this engenders a safe, relaxed, and easy-going atmosphere. Read more about Cadiz, Spain
8 Friday, March 24, 2023 At Sea
9 Saturday, March 25, 2023 Valencia, Spain 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Valencia city, the administrative capital of the Valencian community and the centre of the region of L'Horta, is situated in the centre of the Spanish Mediterranean coastline. The Old City of Valencia, with its monuments, museums, and gardens, is a major tourist attraction. Here one finds the Gothic building of La Lonja that has been declared by UNESCO as a universal heritage monument. Read more about Valencia, Spain
10 Sunday, March 26, 2023 Palma de Mallorca, Spain 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Palma de Mallorca is the major city and port on the Mediterranean island of Majorca, and capital city of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is situated on the south coast of the island on the Bay of Palma, and almost half of the total population of Majorca live there. Visitors are spellbound by its blue waters, white beaches, lush foliage (almost 40 percent of the island is protected countryside), and 300 days of sunshine each year. Read more about Palma de Mallorca, Spain
11 Monday, March 27, 2023 At Sea
12 Tuesday, March 28, 2023 Cagliari, Italy 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Cagliari is the capital of the island of Sardinia, a region in Italy. An ancient city, it has seen the rule of several civilisations and in the 'old city' that lies on the top of a hill with a wonderful view of the ocean, it's amazing to see the walls still intact, together with its two 13th century limestone towers. Importantly, the city is also home to exceptional beaches, rocky cliffs and numerous underwater caves. Read more about Cagliari, Italy
13 Wednesday, March 29, 2023 At Sea
14 Thursday, March 30, 2023 Valletta, Malta 6:00 AM 9:00 PM
Valletta (aka Belt Valletta, Città Umilissima) - traditionally reserved for the historic walled citadel that serves as Malta's principal administrative district - is the capital city of Malta, located in the central-eastern portion of the island. This UNESCO World Heritage Site is essentially Baroque in style, with elements of Mannerist, Neo-Classical and Modern architecture. Don't miss the the majestic St John's Co-Cathedral, with its imposing bastions and a treasure of priceless paintings. Read more about Valletta, Malta
15 Friday, March 31, 2023 At Sea
16 Saturday, April 1, 2023 Athens, Greece 5:30 AM 7:00 PM
Athens, the capital and largest city of Greece, is also one of the world's oldest cities with an unparalleled history that spans around 3,400 years. Experiencing long periods of sunshine throughout the year, and known as "the cradle of Western civilisation", it is a 'must-see' destination for world travellers. The city contains a fascinating variety of different architectural styles, ranging from Greco-Roman through Neo-Classical, to Modern. Read more about Athens, Greece
17 Sunday, April 2, 2023 Mykonos, Greece 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Mykonos is the principal town of the island of the same name, which is part of the Cyclades, and could well be described as the most sophisticated of the Greek Islands. Visited by innumerable international celebrities - you may even see some enjoying a coffee on the sidewalk - it is not surprising that it is considered by many to be one of the top tourist destinations in the world. It is also an island with beautiful landscapes, scores of churches, some fascinating monuments, and windmills. Read more about Mykonos, Greece
18 Monday, April 3, 2023 Heraklion, Crete, Greece 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Heraklion is the largest urban centre in Crete, the capital of the region, and the economic centre of this Greek Island. It is a town with modern buildings, but it is probably the surrounding area of amazing beaches, delightful villages, and impressive gorges that accord it its popularity. Heraklion is home to some of Greece's most important archaeological sites. Read more about Heraklion, Crete, Greece
19 Tuesday, April 4, 2023 Souda Bay, Crete, Greece 8:00 AM 6:00 PM
Souda Bay is a natural harbour on the NW coast of the Greek Island of Crete. The bay is overlooked on both sides by hills, and near the mouth of the bay is a set of small islands with Venetian fortifications. Now home to a strategic NATO base, there are no real public beaches, and yet it is now a popular tourist destination. Read more about Souda Bay, Crete, Greece
20 Wednesday, April 5, 2023 At Sea
21 Thursday, April 6, 2023 Valletta, Malta 6:00 AM 9:00 PM
22 Friday, April 7, 2023 At Sea
23 Saturday, April 8, 2023 Split, Croatia 9:00 AM 5:00 PM
Split, in Croatia, is a busy port on the shores of the Mediterranean and has numerous ferries operating to and from nearby islands. It is also a popular tourist resort with beaches and pleasant promenades. Venetian, Gothic and Renaissance houses and several medieval churches add architectural interest. Read more about Split, Croatia
24 Sunday, April 9, 2023 Trieste, Italy 8:00 AM 10:00 PM
Trieste is a modern lively city, yet much of its former grandeur is still clearly apparent in the form of imposing buildings with neo-classical facades. It became a part of Italy at the break-up of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918. Trieste has often been referred to as Vienna by the Sea. Read more about Trieste, Italy
25 Monday, April 10, 2023 Rovinj, Croatia 7:00 AM 4:00 PM
The popular tourist spot of Rovinj, a city in Croatia, is situated on the north Adriatic Sea on the western coast of the Istrian peninsula. Delicately poised between a medieval port and a modern tourist resort, it has managed to preserve its character by keeping major development well away from its historic centre. The Old Town is perched on an elevated peninsula surrounded by spacious Venetian terracotta-roofed houses, elegant piazzas, and crowned by the Church of St. Read more about Rovinj, Croatia
26 Tuesday, April 11, 2023 Dubrovnik, Croatia 9:00 AM 7:00 PM
Dubrovnik, a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, is a prominent tourist destination. The city joined the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1979. An outstanding feature of the Old Town of Dubrovnik is its intact city walls that run uninterrupted for 1,940m encircling the city. Read more about Dubrovnik, Croatia
27 Wednesday, April 12, 2023 At Sea
28 Thursday, April 13, 2023 Valletta, Malta 6:00 AM Disembark
Azura Overview
(from 6 verified customers)
Entering service in 2010, at 115,055 GT and carrying 3096 passengers, Azura is one of P&O's three larger cruise ships. Sporting a distinctive rounded bow, Azura is filled with modern luxuries and innovations, including an open-air movie screen and an atrium dance floor.
Azura Cabins
QB, OG, OF, OE, OD, OC, OA, NE, ND, NA, MA, OB, PA, PB, PC, PE, PD, PF, SC
Average Balcony Size – 0 m2
In addition to standard features: •One lower oversized single bed •Bathroom with shower and WC Special touches: Mineral water on arrival, Luxurious pamper pack. Size: Approx 130 square feet
LB, LC, LE, LF, MB, MC, ME, MF, NB, NC, NF, RC, LA, KC, KA, JD, JC, JB, JA
Outside cabins (approx. 137-181 sq.ft) Air-conditioned outside cabins have two lower beds that are convertible to a king-size bed with wardrobe and drawer space. The bathroom has a shower, or shower over bath, and WC plus a hairdryer. There is a vanity/writing desk, and a TV for your enjoyment, plus a radio, telephone, safe and tea and coffee making facilities. Outside cabins may have a window or portholes. On arrival you will be offered Mineral water and a pamper pack.
DA, DB, DD, HA, HB, DE, HC, HD, HE, HF, JG, JF, JE, GE, GC, GA, DC, CC, CB, CA
Superior deluxe balcony cabins (approx. 317 sq.ft. including balcony) Fully air-conditioned superior deluxe balcony cabins enjoy two lower beds convertible to king-size bed. Bathrooms boast a full-sized bath, shower, sink, vanity unit and WC plus hairdryer, bathrobe & slippers. There is a sitting area with sofa, chair and coffee table, two flat screen interactive TVs, plus radio and telephone, writing desk, refrigerator and tea/coffee making facilities. There is also a safe. Floor to ceiling sliding glass doors lead to your balcony with recliner chairs and table. Superior deluxe balcony cabins have a magazine selection, atlas and binoculars, plus fruit basket, flowers, champagne, chocolates, mineral water and pamper pack on arrival and canapés once a week.
A1, BE, B5, B4, B2, BC, BA, AE, AD, AC, AB
Suites (approx. 449-753 sq.ft. including balcony) Fully air-conditioned suites enjoy two lower beds convertible to king-size bed. Bathrooms boast a whirlpool bath, shower and WC plus luxurious premier pamper pack, bathrobe & slippers. Additionally there is a useful walk-in dressing area with iron & ironing board, trouser press and a hairdryer. The lounge has a sofa & chairs plus dining table and chairs, with a mini stereo and a TV plus radio and telephone, writing desk, refrigerator and tea/coffee making facilities. There is also a safe. Floor to ceiling sliding glass doors lead to your balcony with loungers, chairs and table. Suites have an optional butler service, magazine and newspaper selection, atlas and binoculars, plus fruit bowl, mineral water, flowers, champagne and chocolates on arrival and daily canapés.
Deck Plans for Azura
Sky Deck
Ocean Deck
Aqua deck
Promenade Deck
Lido Deck
Riviera Deck
A Deck
B Deck
C Deck
D Deck
E Deck
F Deck
P Deck
Cabin has one additional single sofa bed
Cabin has two additional beds (in a form of double sofa bed)
Cabin has two additional beds in the form of Pullman beds
Extra pull down bed available
Balconies visible from above and/or neighbouring balconies
Cabin is partially shaded
Steel fronted balcony
Part obstructed view
Fixed twin beds
All adapted cabins have a shower only, with the exception of Suites/Mini-suites which have standard bath and separate shower.
Other dates available for Azura
Canary Islands Cruise - J204
Cruise Line: P&O Cruises UK
Ship: Arcadia
Departure Date: Sunday, March 27, 2022
Departs: Southampton
Returns: Southampton
Mini Suite
Departure Date: Thursday, December 21, 2023
Ship: Aurora
Departure Date: Friday, April 1, 2022
Canary Islands Cruise - R219
Departure Date: Wednesday, December 21, 2022
Departure Date: Friday, December 1, 2023
7 nights<
Canary Islands Cruise - A222
Departure Date: Friday, October 21, 2022
Duration: 7 nights
Returns: Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Canary Islands Cruise - A222B
Departure Date: Saturday, October 22, 2022
Departure Date: Friday, November 4, 2022
Departure Date: Saturday, November 5, 2022
Departure Date: Friday, November 11, 2022
Departure Date: Saturday, November 12, 2022
Departure Date: Saturday, December 3, 2022
Departure Date: Saturday, December 10, 2022
Departure Date: Friday, December 16, 2022
Departure Date: Friday, January 6, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, January 7, 2023
Departure Date: Friday, January 13, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, January 14, 2023
Departure Date: Friday, February 3, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, February 4, 2023
Departure Date: Friday, February 10, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, February 11, 2023
Departure Date: Friday, March 3, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, March 4, 2023
Departure Date: Friday, March 10, 2023
Departure Date: Saturday, March 11, 2023
Departure Date: Thursday, October 13, 2022
Departs: Valletta
Canary Islands Cruise - A221A
Canary Islands Cruise - A222C
Departure Date: Thursday, October 6, 2022
Canary Islands Cruise - A220D